The Union Customs Code from 1 May 2016: what importers of strapping components should review

On 1 May 2016 the Union Customs Code became the main body of customs law across the European Union. As Tax Journal reported on 4 May 2016, it replaced customs legislation dating back to 1992. The stated aims include a simpler, faster and safer customs union, greater legal certainty for businesses and completion of the move to a fully electronic, paperless environment.

For a company importing strapping components into the EU, most day-to-day work will look familiar: goods are still classified, valued, given an origin and declared. But several changes reward a short review in May 2016, while the rules are new and the transition is under way.

What changed on 1 May 2016

The legal text is Regulation (EU) No 952/2013, adopted in October 2013 and supported by delegated and implementing acts. According to the Tax Journal summary, key changes for businesses include:

• Authorisations. Simplifications and special procedures such as customs warehousing, inward processing and duty deferment need new or renewed authorisations, with authorised economic operator (AEO) standards playing a larger role.
• Guarantees. Financial guarantees are expected to cover actual and potential customs debts for such procedures, with reductions or waivers tied to meeting AEO criteria.
• Royalties and licence fees. More of these payments may be treated as part of the customs value of imported goods.
• A phased transition. Full electronic implementation is expected by the end of 2020; until then, existing IT systems and in some cases paper forms continue in use.

None of these is specific to packaging, but each touches the importer of buckles, seals or strap that holds a warehouse authorisation, defers duty or buys under a licence.

Binding tariff information: stronger and shorter

Binding tariff information (BTI) gives an importer legal certainty on how a product is classified. Under Article 33 of the Code, a BTI decision taken under the new rules is binding on the customs authorities and also on the holder, and it is valid for three years from the date it takes effect.

The article also states that the holder must be able to show that the declared goods correspond in every respect to those described in the decision. This is where packaging components need care. Buckles, seals and clips come in many variants that look alike: different wire diameters, sheet thicknesses, finishes and nominal strap widths. If the BTI describes one variant and the import is another, the decision may not cover it.

Practical steps:

• List what each BTI actually describes. Material, finish, dimensions and intended use as written in the decision.
• Link BTI references to your item master. One part number, one description, one BTI where applicable.
• Flag changes. A switch from a galvanized to a phosphated buckle, or a new wire diameter, should trigger a check rather than an assumption.
• Diary the expiry. Three-year validity means renewals arrive sooner than many teams are used to.

Classification itself is for the importer and its customs adviser to decide. A supplier can help by providing a clear technical description and drawing, but cannot give the importer’s classification decision.

Origin: the last substantial transformation

For non-preferential purposes, Article 60 of the Code states that goods produced in more than one country originate where they underwent their last substantial, economically justified processing that results in a new product or represents an important stage of manufacture.

For metal packaging components this question is not academic. Wire may be drawn in one country, formed into buckles in another, and coated in a third. Origin affects trade defence duties, statistics and, increasingly for steel, surveillance. On 29 April 2016 the EU also published Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/670, which makes the release for free circulation of certain listed iron and steel products, in imports above 2,500 kg net, conditional on a surveillance document. Whether any particular strapping product falls within the listed codes is again a classification question for the importer.

Ask suppliers for a written origin statement that names the country and, where the importer needs it, describes the manufacturing steps that took place there.

A short review list for importers

Area	What to check	Who usually holds the answer
Classification	Each component’s tariff code and any BTI reference	Importer and customs adviser
BTI coverage	Whether imported variants match the BTI description exactly	Importer, with supplier technical data
Origin	Country of last substantial transformation; supporting statement	Supplier, verified by the importer
Steel surveillance	Whether Regulation 2016/670 applies to the goods and shipment size	Importer and customs adviser
Authorisations	Warehousing, deferment or other simplifications under the new Code	Importer
Guarantees	Whether existing guarantee arrangements need to change	Importer and its bank or adviser
Product data	Consistent descriptions across purchase orders, invoices and packing lists	Buyer and supplier together

The common thread is accurate product description. Customs decisions under the new Code depend on goods matching what was declared and what was decided. That rewards the same discipline that good packing operations already need: one clear identity per component.

Preparing your next enquiry

When requesting quotations for galvanized wire buckles, steel strapping seals or woven strap for EU delivery, state the description your customs records use and ask for the technical data and origin information you need. Send the request through the enquiry page so the product identity is agreed before the first shipment.